Lake Airpark: Another phantom Eastside airfield
May 3, 2018, 9:04 AM | Updated: 3:18 pm
After the story about remnants of the old Bellevue Airfield, KIRO Radio listener Owen Blauman reached out to to share photos and memories of another “phantom airfield” on the Eastside.
Enjoyed your story on “Searching for traces of Bellevue’s phantom airfield.” Although I don’t have info about Bellevue Airfield other than many memories as a kid visiting often, I do have some info on another lesser known airfield in Bellevue.
Lake Air was an airport where Newport Shores is now located. When you cross the East Channel Bridge traveling eastbound on I-90, to the right is the marina and Newport Shores.
After WWII, surplus planes were all the buzz in general aviation and many in the area took to flying. Many dirt strips and “flying schools” offered lessons. In fact, when my dad purchased his first plane, the then-owner took him up and gave him tips on how to fly the plane. They landed, my dad bought the plane and took off, no license either. Could never get away with that these days.
The earliest records of Lake Air or Lake Airpark on an aeronautical chart is the October 1948 Seattle Sectional Chart.
According to my dad, he thought it began when the surrounding area was primarily agricultural and the farmer was a pilot. It grew over the years and was recognized on the charts in the 1940s. It was about a 2000-foot unpaved runway.
My dad also told a story of landing at Lake Air. The northern approach was over the water. With a big unique sounding radial engine on his surplus WWII plane, he began the approach. He said there were a couple people in a little fishing boat on Lake Washington near the airfield. Apparently the fisherman didn’t know there was an airport there. When they saw and heard the airplane heading for them on approach, they jumped overboard.
The property was sold sometime around 1957 or 1958 and Lake Air closed soon after. In about 1964, the current canals were cut and the planned neighborhood development, now known as Newport Shores, was built.
When Lake Air closed, my father tore down a hangar he had built for himself there, and then built his house on Mercer Island from the ground up using the lumber he had salvaged. Although now remodeled, the home currently has many of the old timbers from his hangar.
Thank you to Owen Bauman for sharing these memories and photos. If you have memories or images to share about Lake Airpark or Bellevue Airfield — or about other interesting local history stories – please send email to Feliks Banel.
